31 replies to this topic

[Arthur Brown]

Or become trained, insured, and have a small store!

[scjb]

As previously mentioned in RP98-084, David Hattersley was experienced in the use of fireworks, and was not shooting shells for the first time. As mentioned, it would appear he stumbled across the muzzle of a lit mortar...

I was lucky enough to have masters at my school who owned a firework display company, and gained a lot of experience and joy from working with them.

To be honest, it was dealt with in the same way as the firearms restrictions that came about in 1997... politicians feeling the need to do anything as long as it's quick in order to get the media off their back.

<steps down from his soap box>

[Night Owl]

I heard somewhere that he lit the fuse, well what he thought was the fuse but it was a fuse cover, not understanding why it wasnt burning he looked into the mortar, the fuse burned inside the fuse cover.

Seems hard to believe that someone who knows how shells work would ever look into a mortar tube, that shell I believe was an 8", quite a tall tube, he must of bin quite tall to stumble over it!!

Edited by shell shooter man, 19 December 2009 - 04:36 AM.

[Atom Fireworks]

I agree with you all that shell's in the right hands and with competance are just as safe as a £5 box from aldi, infact probably safer. but its not the nov 5th hobbiest or small organisations like scout clubs and so forth that pose the danger, ok a couple of deaths and then ban, not really fair that as apposed to the shell count on how many had been fired up until these 2 accidents happend.

The problem lies with teenage yob's, in their hands it would be like a ''hand grenade'' that they can and did blow phone boxes up with, post boxes ex girlfreinds house with a 3 inch salute u get the picture. Kids can get hold of anything if adults can, i am only 21 just and if i go back 7 8 years ago i remember me abd a freind getting hold of a couple of hundred of the bad boy whistle n bangs, bad boy air bomb repeaters and a few really massive rockets big display ones, now yes i admit i was one of these yobs i talk about and now i see the danger in what i was doing at the time firing air bomb repaeters at each other across car parks was probably allot of fun, but what about and elderly woman walking past, what could have happend wat if one hit someone and seriously injured them, even when the police turned up we just open fired on them too. Now i am helping out with public displays and learning the ropes on cat 4 fireworks and not just the firing of them the set up, both hand and fire by wire.

I believe it is a great tragedy that house hold family parties have been robbed of the pleasure of having shells at their bonfire party but on the other hand if we could have got hold of those shells 7 8 years ago i doubt i would be around now due to the stupid things we would have done with them.

Sorry for the long reply al step down now, i just wanted to give you guys my reasons for belief due to real experience,

Dumper

[Arthur Brown]

Shells in competent hands are reasonably safe, but UK law prohibits the sale of shells for amateur use. A professional user starts by having trained skill, insurance and legal storage, The cost of the insurance depends on the skill training and experience that you have.

It is a simple matter of jumping through the right hoops to become a small but legal user of display shells.

However when a shell has a safety distance of one metre for each millimetre diameter then shells are too big for garden use!

[Spyrotechnics]

Seems hard to believe that someone who knows how shells work would ever look into a mortar tube, that shell I believe was an 8", quite a tall tube, he must of bin quite tall to stumble over it!!

200mm?? what was the maximum size that was available to the general public?

[Night Owl]

There wasnt any real regs back then it was upto the supplier but in general the largest sold to the public was 125mm.

Old brochure, I used to purchase my shells from this.

http://pulsar46.trip...x_new&title=Old firework brochure I found, click to enlarge

Edited by shell shooter man, 19 December 2009 - 04:21 PM.

[CCH Concepts]

i do agree with dumper. the kids in my area are a nightmare. I'm 26 and it wasn't so long ago i was one of these kids, difference being i would never dream of doing what they do.

recently they burnt out 3 cars within a few hundered meters of my house, they did this just for fun.

this would have been just petrol id assume. but if they were able to get hold of shells, it wouldn't be long until a car window was smashed and a shell thrown in. no need to say what the result would be to anyone within 100m of it.

[Night Owl]

I agree with the shell ban but not the blanket ban they did, they punished everyone for the actions of a few.

[pjalchemist]

Or become trained, insured, and have a small store!

Well i have my papers for any expolisve being stored. Locked garge, alarmed, wooden lined metal cabinet, fixed to the floor, locked,

[crystal palace fireworks]

Although the former exploits of Dumper and CCH concepts will raise a few eyebrows,..I think there honesty should be applauded to some degree (although of course not condoned).

When it came to fireworks in my youth (on the bombed out sink estates of east london), I sometimes embarked on what I would call `sky larking about`,...I would stick bangers in milk bottles or even take them to school (yes six or eight in a packet in me buttoned down top pocket) and throw them in the play ground shed for a louder effect, and of course planting lit air bombs in me mums partly cut-off washing line pole (although always the right way up), our intention was never to deliberately hurt, provoke, or cause trouble to other people and there property.

Rightly or wrongly, the only conclusion I can come to is;- in my day we had the threat that dad would tell us off when he got home (sadly unlike many boys growing up today), so there was a certain fear factor and respect for our elders and authority, plus we had far more wasteland to play on and experiment than the kids today,..so is the mentality with some youths different to my day?

I think the overiding desire for boys/youths to experiment is unrelenting,...Im wondering if some of the youth cadet forces in conjuction with the MOD could offer something on there training grounds as a prelude to a firework school? or I would like to see a return to dedicated secondary technical or science schools.

[CCH Concepts]

Although the former exploits of Dumper and CCH concepts will raise a few eyebrows,..I think there honesty should be applauded to some degree (although of course not condoned).

When it came to fireworks in my youth (on the bombed out sink estates of east london), I sometimes embarked on what I would call `sky larking about`,...I would stick bangers in milk bottles or even take them to school (yes six or eight in a packet in me buttoned down top pocket) and throw them in the play ground shed for a louder effect, and of course planting lit air bombs in me mums partly cut-off washing line pole (although always the right way up), our intention was never to deliberately hurt, provoke, or cause trouble to other people and there property.

Rightly or wrongly, the only conclusion I can come to is;- in my day we had the threat that dad would tell us off when he got home (sadly unlike many boys growing up today), so there was a certain fear factor and respect for our elders and authority, plus we had far more wasteland to play on and experiment than the kids today,..so is the mentality with some youths different to my day?

I think the overiding desire for boys/youths to experiment is unrelenting,...Im wondering if some of the youth cadet forces in conjuction with the MOD could offer something on there training grounds as a prelude to a firework school? or I would like to see a return to dedicated secondary technical or science schools.

i would like to say in case i worded it badly before, i have never been one of those kids out doing this stuff, just either witnessed the aftermath or known people it has effected.

in fact my mums best friend has just lost her house recently to such and incident. a kid was behind her house firing rockets at peoples roofs, one managed to get in between her rafters and into her loft before it blow. she lost most of the first floor of her house. now kids being kids i doubt he meant much harm. but not meaning much harm with a shell would have been much worse.

i know plenty of kids that used to lunch rockets and airbombs at each other thinking its was that bad. now take a 1" or 1.5" salute thinking its the same.

fact is i was one of the few kids that got a good up bringing and wouldn't do this stuff, not cause i didn't want to, but because i didn't want to up set my mum.

what about my suggestion before about selling pre-made rigs with full ignition systems. it would take it out of the hands of the yobs simply because of the price.

[crystal palace fireworks]

what about my suggestion before about selling pre-made rigs with full ignition systems. it would take it out of the hands of the yobs simply because of the price.
[/quote]

In my opinion, pricing is not the answer (it only punishes the majority who have to pay more for there fireworks because of a few mindless idiots),..it doen`t address the root core issues.

[Atom Fireworks]

I think the only way to have it so that the general public can have cat 4 is if the government bring out a licence abit like the firearms licence that enables you to then purchase some cat 4 maybe limited to 3 inch. Andto get the licence you have to have attended one of the cat4 courses and have proof of it. also maybe an age restriction of say 25 on the licence Just a thought. Over pricing things would just mean a bigger black market and also punish those who are really enthusiasts and not chancers.

Dumper

[CCH Concepts]

most enthusiast would spend £100+ on fireworks. so just make the min package at say £100 doesn't stop it being good Valle for money. you could get a few racks for this. the idea is to separate the enthusiast from the yob, the yob wants to spend a fiver and gt a few rockets.

but yes, if there was a basic CAT4 course costing say £50 or less that would mean anyone could lunch shells i think this would work. plus the way to get around storage issues. is th shells are pre ordered and picked up or delivered on day of use,